Our Fitness Blog

The Amazing Facts of Weight loss vs Fat loss

It is pretty common for people to want to know if they should be focused on fat loss or weight loss. Typically when people meet fitness goals, it is focused on weight loss. Conversely, people obviously tend to get very frustrated by weight gain.

Are you ready for the truth……

Are you sure…..

Well here it is….

Weight gain is not always a bad thing!

Now before you go out talking about how I told you that it is ok to gain weight, let me explain. Your weight is only one indicator in your fitness level and overall health condition. To get a true guage of where you are, based on weight alone can be very difficult.

More than once I have heard “Something’s not working. I’m actually gaining weight.”

And more than once, my response tends to be…”But didn’t you already tell me that all of your clothes are getting too big?”

People tend to assume that just because the number on the scale doesn’t go down, then they must not be seeing the results they want. People tend to get; so wrapped up in weight loss that they forget about many of the other aspects of getting fit. They fail to understand that they may not lose pounds because they are replacing fat with lean muscle.

Now let me clear up another thing….

You hear people say that muscle weighs more than fat…..

POP QUIZ …… which weighs more? A pound of fat…. or a pound on muscle?

Are you ready for this?? They both weigh a POUND. The truth is that muscle is more dense than fat, not heavier.

The way to get that slim, healthy, fit look that you want is not by losing weight. To see the results that most of us want to see, we have to lose body fat and build lean muscle. It is not uncommon to go down a couple of pants sizes and still add a pound or two. What you have done is decreased your body fat and gained lean muscle. In this case, gaining weight is a good thing.

It is ok to use the scale as an indicator if you like. Just don’t use it as your only means of judging progress. There are multiple other factors to take in to account. If you want my advice, I say just throw the thing away! Judge by how you look, how you feel, and how your clothes fit.

So, should you focus on fat loss or weight loss? In my opinion, don’t put all of your focus on either. Put your focus on being healthy! Get and keep a regular full body workout that continues to challenge you. Eat in a way that is nutritionally right, and let your body composition begin to take care of itself.

Drew Brashier has been involved with 9Round in nearly every capacity of the company. He has been a member, trainer, owning partner of a franchise location, and now serves as a corporate officer as the Director of Operational Support.